BP suspended from new US gov’t contracts over Gulf oil spill

Credit: AFP/Getty Images

A sign for a BP filling station is pictured in central London on October 30, 2012. BP posted earnings far stronger than expected and hiked its dividend as the British energy giant prepared for a new Russia adventure after being rocked by the devastating Gulf of Mexico oil spill. AFP PHOTO / CARL COURT (Photo credit should read CARL COURT/AFP/Getty Images)

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- BP is being temporarily suspended from new contracts with the U.S. government, the Environmental Protection Agency says.

Two weeks ago, BP agreed to plead guilty to charges involving the deaths of 11 workers on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, which exploded and sank in April 2010, setting off the nation’s largest offshore oil spill. BP will also plead guilty to lying to Congress about how much oil was spewing from the blown-out Macondo well

The agency said Wednesday that the suspension is due to BP’s “lack of business integrity as demonstrated by the company’s conduct with regard to the Deepwater Horizon blowout, explosion, oil spill, and response.”